Water-tight door foe marine safes



Nitti-RED STATES 'PATENT OFFCE.

M'r'iflllllAS LU DLUM, OF

FAIR HAVEN, VERMONT.

WATER-TIGHT DOOR FOR MARINE SAFES, LOCKERS, &C.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 23,477, dated April 5, 1859.

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known. th at l', lilarrnrns Lt'nLn M, of Fair Haren, in the county of Rutland and State of Vermont, have invented a certain new and useful improvement in Water- Tight Doors for Marine Safes, Lockers, and other Purposes, of which the following` is a full, clear, and exact description, reference beingl had to the accompanying drawing, which forms part of this specification, and in whichm Figure l represents an inside view of the door and door-frame; Fig. 2 a` side or edge view of the door-frame and accompanying parts; F ig. 3 a lono'itudinal section, and Figs. t and 5 transverse sections showing the door closed and partly open.

In the application of my improvement to marine safes or lockers, l here speak of the door as being water-tight only, but by thatit is intended to be implied that by a nice construction of the parts or by a selection of proper surface or packing material, it is or may be air tight as well. rihe utility of such a door whether as applied to the safes, chests, or lockers of vessels of large tonnage` or of smaller craft including life and other boats, need not specially be descanted on here, as the importance of tight titting doors to such articles or parts is well understood, whether such articles or parts be fixtures, or detached, or detachable contrivances that in the ca se of a casualty may be used as floats.

Discarding all double or separate arrangements of parts which require eXtra effort or time to make the door tight, in addition to or independent of locking or fastening it and independent` of what may be necessary from time to time in adjustment of the parts, l adopt the simpler and readier plan of making the door self-tightening on closing, or being shut to and locked or fastened; and this l do substantially as follows.

Referring to the accompanying drawing, the door (A) or lid is connected by a hinge or hinges (a) at its one edge to the framework (B) of, say, a locker or safe to which the inner portion (7i) represents metallic lining. rlthe opposite edge of the door and its adjoining frame-work may be provided with ordinary or any suitable locking contrivanees. Said door occupies, when closed, a recessed position in the frame-work (B), and preferably so that its outside surface is flush with, or below, the general outside surface of the framework or casing, or if ma de with moldings so that they only project beyond the general surface and which may be within moldings to the surrounding framework. This door (A) I call the main or outer door as it is provided with an inner door, that, combined, forms a double door or lid. Thus, I make the main door (A) hollow on its inside, and face its inner portion with a secondary door (C), between which and the main door is a semi-elliptic spring (D) arranged to cross the centers of the doors and kept in place by screws (ci) which pass through slots in the ends of the spring so as to admit of free play to the spring in its action against the inner door to press it outward, or in the action of the inner door, when forced inward, against it.

The inner door (C) is secured and kept in place by means of, say, four pins, two (ol, a",) on each side, passing into the edges of the inner door and having free play in corresponding slots (c, e) out in the inside rim which forms part of or is secured to the outer door, within which the inner door, thus hung and acted on by the spring (D), is made capable of play inwardly and outwardly in an easy and yielding manner partaking somewhat of the character of a universal l movement.

The outer face of the inner door is covered or edged with india rubber or some other soft or elastic substance (f). Vhile the outer door (A) has or may have its bearing proper, on being shut to, against the frame-work it is hinged to; the inner door (C) bears by its soft facing againsta collar (g) of an independent frame or interior setting (E) in such manner that on shutting to the door the collar (g), which in shape is a continuous border, becomes bedded in the soft facing of the inner door. Thus, the slamming-to of the outer door will not cause injury to the inner door, as though the latter has the general motion of the former, it has in addition an independent motion or freedom to move and this in so yielding a manner to any required and (littering extent at opposite sides, edges, or corners, as to secure in air and water (or either) tight joint being established by the embedding of the projecting collar in the soft facing (f), independently of or in addition to the joint formed by the junction of the outer door with or against its surrounding framework.

The independent frame or interior setting (E), which forms by its collar an independent bearing to or for the inner door, may be made of any suitable metal, with an outer flange (la), cast on it, designed to bear on a soft or elastic packing (i), interposed between said flange and an inner flange (7e) to the frame work (B), so as to form a tight but soft and yielding seat. Said independent frame (E) is drawn to its place, and made tight or4 adjusted, by double wedges (Z), arranged between an inner flange (m) to the frame, and a border frame (a), that may also serve to hold or bear down on the edges of the metallic lining of the safe. By removing the wedges (Z), the independent frame (E), which is entered from the outside, may be drawn out. Such independent frame or setting, however, may be differently fastened, by the employment of any suitable mechanical equivalents to the wedges, such as screws, and the frame be altered to' suit such fastenings; or, supposing thedoor and frame-work to be of squareform, but it is desired to have the opening into the safe or locker of a round figure, then the hole in the independent Vframe or setting should be made round, as may also the hole in the outer frame, and said independent frame be held at the back by a circular rim screwing on to it while it may be constructed to present in front a valve seat, the equivalentrof the collar in the former case, for a conical valve projection from the inner door (C) to t against or in. Such or other like changes however' subscribed my name.

M. LUDLUM. `Witnesses WV. L. TOWN, GEORGE H. Sa'rrrI-r. 

